After releasing a 2017 debut full-length (
Backwater) and several EPs and singles, in addition to touring the world multiple times, Australian electro-pop duo
Kllo needed a break.
Chloe Kaul went to Los Angeles for a while, as her cousin
Simon Lam spent time at home and abroad, and both worked on music by themselves and with other artists. While the strain of their previous workload nearly caused
Kllo to break up, the time off allowed them to reflect on their process of making music together, and they were able to focus their energies once they reconvened. Second album
Maybe We Could isn't a stylistic departure from their past work --
Kllo's first EP pretty much established the template of their sound, combining wistful balladry with smooth, sophisticated production drawing from dance music and down-tempo R&B, and that's more or less what's on display here. That said, their production and songwriting skills have sharpened with experience, and the album contains their most memorable material yet. Its best songs combine shuffling, energetic dance beats and choppy vocal manipulations with upfront, laid-bare vocals. Highlights "Still Here" and "Somehow" feature breakbeats drawing from rave, garage, and updated permutations of such, but the songs are never dense or overloaded, and there's plenty of space for
Kaul's clear, yearning lyrics, which generally examine and question rough patches in a relationship. The duo are just as strong in downcast R&B mode, with late-night slow (or mid-tempo) jams like "Insomnia" and "Ironhand" delivering sly yet insistent hooks over slightly woozy beats. While most of the tracks stick to standard song structures, "Maybe We Could" and "A Mirror" are more textural, centering on ambiguous, ethereal vocal loops that seem to suggest a few phrases at once.
Kllo's lyrical themes are nothing out of the ordinary for lovelorn pop music, but their balance of tender introspection and airy yet zestful production sets them apart. ~ Paul Simpson